As Time Passes By
by Razamataz22
Summary: Four years is a long time by any standards. Four years without the one you love is even harder. When Finn returns however, it is clear that nothing can go back to the way it was.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Adventure Time**

**...**

Time was not a relevant thing for somebody like Princess Bubblegum or Marceline, their life spans having already spaned over centuries. Time without a special someone however was something which caused great dismay. Without that someone close nearby, days had morphed into weeks, months and even years; five years to be precise.

Upon this, the anniversary of Finn's leaving, Princess Bubblegum had sought fit to call to her those that had been closest to the human for an afternoon together, reminiscing about both the good times and the bad. No matter how much they tried to avoid it they could not help but bring up at least one bad memory during these times together.

It had all started four years ago when Jake came to them all looking for Finn, the shape shifting dog stating that Finn had decided to go out on a solo journey. Jake had not thought much about it at the time, having been too deep into a game with BMO at the time. A single day had passed and still Jake had not thought much about it, thinking that he'd be back within the week. When the week had come and gone, Jake had gone searching for him at all of Finn's main hang out points, including Marceline, Princess Bubblegum and Flame Princesses old house. Together, those four had set out upon a journey of their own in an attempt to find Finn but no matter how far they looked, how long they gazed, they could never find any clue to where he had gone.

Flame Princess, determined to find Finn no matter what the cost, had searched over a dozen dungeons within a week, praying that among the bones of lost souls she would not come across the corpse of her ex boyfriend. When she had given up on finding Finn, she held a presidential election within the fire kingdom in order to find a new ruler as she believed that she no longer had the drive to rule her own empire when she couldn't even find one single person. The night she had given up she had ended up in the hospital, almost having cried herself almost to the point of extinguishment.

Marceline had fared no better with the search as she had only the night to work with. Flying from village to village, those who were not frightened by her appearance were able to give her no clues that would help her in her search. During the dead of night she had infiltrated the Ice King's fortress hoping that the person who was once her best friend hadn't done something that he wouldn't be allowed to live to regret. Her search however came up with no answers and no clues to follow. Figuring that Finn would be Finn, she had subjected herself to wait it out until her weenie came home. As the months passed though she lost more and more hope that she would ever see the human again and in a fit of rage she had gone into the Night O'sphere and caused such destruction and mayhem that her father had never been prouder.

Having had known Finn for the longest amongst the three women, Bubblegum had taken it far worse than the other two had thought she might have. Weeks would pass without food, sleep or a shower as the princess of the Candy Kingdom researched every possible element into what could have happened. While Marceline and Flame Princess had searched by any normal means, Bonnie had spent her time looking at all of the abnormal ways that could potentially explain Finn's disappearance. She went as far as to create a portal to an alternate dimension and after having dismissed all of the affection sent her way by the numerous princes in that world she returned without having progressed any further in her search. Numerous failed experiments followed and she soon found herself in the hospital right next to Flame Princess, failing to keep care of herself had almost killed the pink haired princess.

By pure chance the three of them had met one evening and had been able to share with one another their feelings for the boy and how they had gone about their search for him. With mutual agreement, they would come together every two months and talk.

Nothing more, nothing less.

When they met the first couple of times, needless to say the conversation was always about Finn. As time wore on however, their talks began to lighten in mood but never did they forget why they were there in the first place.

"I made some tea," announced Princess Bubblegum as she brought over a boiling kettle, the three teacups already upon the table where Flame Princess was seated.

"Thank you," said the elemental as she accepted the beverage. As she watched the boiling water enter her teacup, she reminded herself of the first time the princess of the Candy Kingdom had brought her this drink. It was unlike anything that she had tasted before and while it was at first painful to drink she had gotten used to it and it felt more like a tickling sensation now as it vaporised within her.

"And one for you Marceline," said Princess Bubblegum as she lifted up the teacup. The Vampire Queen, who had been lazily floating above them, took the drink without question.

"Cheers," she said nonchalantly as she postured herself so that when she began to drink the liquid wouldn't spill over the carpet. The event had happened before, something which the scientific princess had not been too happy about.

"So have you thought of my invitation to come live here in the Candy Kingdom?" Princess Bubblegum asked of the elemental as she took a seat at the table.

"I have but I'll have to decline," said Flame Princess as she took a sip of her drink before placing it back down on the table in front of her. "While I may be able to learn things about ruling a kingdom from you, that is no longer the life I achieve."

"I understand that," said Princess Bubblegum. "The invite still stands however if you want to live in an area more populated."

"I like the peace and quiet," said FP. "I don't have to worry about the hustle and bustle of the street and I'm just free to be myself. No expectations on me and no worries."

"You've got the right frame of mind," said Marceline as she added her two cents to the conversation. "You should come around my cave more often and jam, I'm sure I've got some kind of instrument that you'll take a liking too."

"Thank you, I'll do that someday," said Flame Princess with a smile.

Before the conversation could continue further, the phone in the back corner began to ring loudly. "Excuse me," said Princess Bubblegum as she stood up and made her way over to the telephone.

"It's probably that little peppermint man servant of hers," said Marceline with a shrug not really paying too much attention. That was of course until Princess Bubblegum's words became loud enough that they could almost be heard through the walls.

"LSP, calm down," said the leader of the Candy Kingdom over the phone. "Slow down, you're not making any sense. What do you mean it's the news of the decade? Who? It's him, who's him?"

Marceline and Flame Princess looked at one another in confusion, wondering just what the sugary princess was talking about. It was clear by the look on one another's face that they had no real clue what the phone call was about. When Princess Bubblegum put the phone down however they looked to her to see that there was a state of shock within her eyes.

"Finn's back."

Within a heartbeat Flame Princess had crossed the distance between the two of them, her eyes demanding that PB reveal more of what she knew. "Let's not get our hopes up," said PB as she tried to calm down the elemental woman.

"She's right," said Marceline as she floated across to join the other two. "Four years have passed and LSP isn't really the most accurate person when it comes to rumours. That being said, there's no harm in checking it out."

"I'll arrange a carriage," said Princess Bubblegum as she set about her duty to her friends, leaving Marceline and Flame Princess alone.

"Like she said, we shouldn't get our hopes up too much," said Marceline as the immortal vampire placed a comforting hand on FP's shoulder.

"I just want it to be true so much though," said FP as she rubbed her forearms anxiously. Truly, Marceline couldn't blame her. Unlike her and PB who had already lived well beyond a normal lifespan, Flame Princess now was only nineteen years of age and had already accomplished more than many would in their lifetimes. At the same time though she was still young and often let her emotions get the better of her. Thankfully though after accepting Princess Bubblegum's invitations, Flame Princess had undergone both research and extensive surgery and no longer did her emotions were no longer directly linked to her actions as an elemental.

"We all want it to be true," said Marceline as she removed her hand as to not get too burnt. Even though her skin was singed it was already starting to mend itself thanks to her restorative abilities. "Even though we're trying to think on the positive side we have to accept the reality that it may just be false information."

"I know," said Flame Princess as she lowered her head slightly.

"Carriage is ready," said Princess Bubblegum as she re-entered the room. "According to the information Lumpy Space Princess gave me it should take us about an hour and a half to reach our destination."

"Which way are we heading?" asked Flame Princess.

"West."

"West?" repeated Marceline. "An hour and a half by carriage west will lead us to the ocean."

"But, Finn hates the ocean," said Flame Princess, remembering that her boyfriend at the time had told her that little bit of information, something she had found quite amusing as she had still believed he was a water elemental at the time.

"Indeed, which is why I can't truly believe that he would be arriving this way," said PB as she cusped her chin with the palm of her hand. "LSP stated that the person whom she had heard this information from stated that a male human was coming to land via boat in a couple of hours. This in and of itself is hard to believe as there are only a handful of boats able to cross the ocean without fear of being destroyed."

"Somehow I don't think Finn has been on a cruise liner all this time," said Marceline.

"Still, it's as much of a lead as anything," said Princess Bubblegum. "All rumours start off as fragments of some kind of truth. It's worth checking it out at least. If it turns out to be nothing than we waste nothing but time, if we do nothing however we may give up all hope of finding Finn."

While her words were dark in nature, both Marceline and Flame Princess could easily see where she was coming from. With synchronised nods of approval, they began to prepare themselves for the journey ahead.

...

The carriage ride was a silent one to say the least. While the three women beforehand had been happy to talk with one another, they sat in silence as the anticipation of the destination weighed upon them. The blinds within the carriage were drawn to prevent any sunlight from entering on the odd chance that the protective clothes that Marceline was wearing wasn't enough.

"We should be arriving shortly," announced the coach driver in a loud enough voice that the three people within could hear.

"Thank you," replied the pink haired princess before picking up a nearby umbrella that was sitting aside the carriage door. "Hopefully this will be enough shelter for you Marceline."

"It'll do," said the Vampire Queen as she took the object without question.

"What do you think he'll be like?" asked Flame Princess as she rubbed her knees together awkwardly.

"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves," said Princess Bubblegum.

"Your highness," said the carriage driver. "Lady Rainicorn is currently flying above us, I believe she got your message."

"That's good to hear," said the princess in a relieved tone.

"Oh, and princess, we've arrived," said the driver before he pulled upon the reigns of the horses, pulling them to a stop. Before anybody could even reach the handle of the door it was opened from the outside revealing Jake standing there with Lady Rainicorn standing behind him.

"Where is he, where is he, where is he?" Jake shouted over and over.

"If the information we received is correct, he should be arriving by boat within a few minutes now," said Princess Bubblegum as she stepped out of the carriage quickly followed by her two friends.

"Naneun gong-gi eissneun dong-an naneun jeobgeun hamdae leul boassda," said Lady as the door to the carriage was closed.

"Sorry, I missed that one," said Flame Princess not having been able to understand what Lady said.

"We saw a fleet of ships approaching when we were flying," explained Jake.

"How many?" asked Marceline.

"Five, you can see them coming in now," said Jake as he pointed towards the water.

"Alright, everybody split up and move to where a ship is going to dock," said Princess Bubblegum. "If Finn's on one of these ships we'll find him."

"Got it," said Flame Princess as she zipped away to where the furthest boat would be docking shortly. Without delay, the rest of them split up as well intent on finding Finn.

...

At the first dock, Jake stretched up high enough so that he towered above the rest of the nearby people to be easily seen. As the people aboard the ship began to get off he set about shouting Finn's name as loudly as he could but as the crowds began to thin however he was at a loss, unable to find his brother he could only hope that the others had better luck than he had.

...

"Eodi issni Finn," said Lady Rainicorn as she called out for her boyfriend's brother. With no luck on the ground, she took to the air in order to gain a better vantage point but even from above she had no luck with finding the human.

...

Marceline had not waited for her designated ship to dock, rather floating over the small breadth of water and quickly set about investigating whether or not her friend was aboard. Many of the people who had been on the ship were scared by her sudden appearance but she paid no attention to them as she went about her way, the umbrella above her head protecting her from the sun's rays. "Oi you," she said grabbing a nearby passenger by the scruff of their collar, her arms protected from the sunlight by large gloves. "Was there a human aboard this ship?"

"A human, I thought they were all instinct," said the person in response to which Marceline scowled in annoyance. "Please don't eat me."

Tossing them to the ground, Marceline flew back to shore finding that the ship she had arrived on was the slowest of them all, the other four boats already having docked. Rushing off, she was determined to find out if any of the others had had any luck. Sadly though it was at this time that she failed to notice the small dingy, tiny in size being towed behind the larger vessel, it's sole occupant lifting an hand up in order to shield his eyes from the sun's blinding light.

...

"Naega amuli sido eolmana yeolsimhi, geuleul chaj-eul su eobs-seubnida," said Lady as she told of her attempts to the rest of the group.

"Me neither," said Princess Bubblegum. "I guess it was just false hope after all."

"All this ocean air is messing up my sense of smell as well," said Jake. "Even if he was somewhere nearby I wouldn't be able to track him that way."

Marceline, seeing how distraught the Flame Princess was, put a comforting arm around her shoulder in a semi-hug. "There there, we knew to expect this from the beginning," she said.

"It doesn't make it any easier to handle," said Flame Princess as she embraced Marceline, the Vampire doing her best not to show that the burning sensation was hurting her too much.

"C'mon, we should go," said Princess Bubblegum as she started making her way to the carriage the rest of the group following suit. Gone was the hope and cheeriness that they had held previously, replaced with sorrow and heartache. Their walk back to the carriage was a silent one until Flame Princess stopped in place, causing the others to look at her in confusion.

"Everything alright?" asked Jake.

Flame Princess didn't answer as she looked over her shoulder before turning around completely. Walking steadily towards them, with a rucksack slung over a single shoulder was a man walking towards them with a large cloak covering his appearance. Flame Princess however could feel a warmth radiating off of him, something that she had once felt before. Lifting his right arm up, the man grabbed hold of the hood of the cloak and tore it back, revealing locks of golden hair and a face that none of them could forget.

"FINN!" they all exclaimed as one, shocked completely by the human's appearance.

"Sup guys," said Finn casually before Flame Princess crossed the distance between them quickly before landing a burning fist into his stomach causing the wind to be knocked out of him. "Flame Princess, the hell was that for?"

"That was for making me worried," said Flame Princess before wrapping Finn up in a hug, one which quickly caused his cloak to catch fire.

"Excuse me one second," said Finn as he pushed Flame Princess away before the group watched him tear the cloak off of his body before he suffered burns to his skin and flesh. In doing so however he showed them something that none of them had expected and none of them could prevent themselves from looking at where his right arm should have been, a horrendous scar stretching across his shoulder.

"Oh my Glob Finn, what happened!" exclaimed Jake shocked at seeing his brother with only a single arm. Finn looked up at the group, a sadness in his eyes that they had only seen on the most rarest of occasions.

"I found my dad," he said softly.

"But Finn, dad's been dead for ages," said Jake trying to be as compassionate as he could.

"Not our dad Jake, my dad," said Finn clarifying the situation. With those simple words, everybody could suddenly understand the task that Finn had set himself upon.

And in that quest he had found his human father.

...

**Hope you enjoyed.**


	2. Chapter 2

**First thing I have to say before this chapter, is that I haven't actually watched the beginning of the sixth series of Adventure Time but when reviews started coming in mentioning stuff such as the Citadel I had to do a bit of research. Spoilers for anybody who hasn't watched the sixth series, Finn actually does lose his arm. This was something I actually hadn't expected, I brought inspiration off that by the fact that both Farmworld Finn and Shoko (Finn's past life) both lost their arm. So...yea...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Adventure Time**

**...**

Opposed to using the carriage that they had ridden to arrive at the port, the group now rode atop Jake's back, the shapeshifting dog having had enlarged himself to giant proportions as to cross the country quickly. With Finn's returning, one could expect the human to be giving detailed accounts of how he slayed some giant beast. That was the Finn they remembered though, the Finn sitting before them seemed nothing other than a husk of what he once was.

It was clear that he was uncomfortable, whenever somebody looked at him their eyes couldn't help but drift to where his right arm once was. These were looks he'd know that he'd have to get used to however. "So if you're here, who's looking after the Fire Kingdom?" Finn asked of Flame Princess, trying to create some manner of small talk that didn't revolve around his adventures.

"The Fire Kingdom's actually run by a prime minister now who's assisted by a board of advisors," explained Flame Princess.

"Neat," said Finn, the first word he'd said that actually sounded like part of his fifteen year old self still existed. "So who's in charge?"

"Cinnamon Bun," said Flame Princess casually, something which caused Princess Bubblegum to almost fall off of Jake.

"Cinnamon Bun's in charge!" she shouted.

"Yea, he was elected by the citizens of the Fire Kingdom," explained Flame Princess. "He actually won by a landslide, barely any of the other candidates got any votes."

"That's...absurd," commented the leader of the Candy Kingdom unsure what else to say on the situation. The Flame Princess merely shrugged her shoulders in response, the kingdom being one of the last things she thought about during recent times. That being said however, if there was another uprising she wouldn't hesitate to right what was wronged, hopefully with Finn by her side once more.

"Alright guys, we're here," announced Jake as he begun to shrink, Marceline floating off of his back before Jake returned to his normal size.

"I'm going to head in and organise a party celebrating Finn's return," announced Princess Bubblegum.

"Please, don't," said Finn slowly.

"Are you sure Finn?" asked Princess Bubblegum.

"Maybe tomorrow, for now I just need to rest," said Finn.

"You're not resting until you tell us where you've been all this time," said Flame Princess putting her foot down.

"Don't force him," said Marceline looking out for her friend.

"No, I deserve to tell you guys that much," said Finn as he ran his fingers through his hair before rubbing the back of his head. "Mind if we do it back at my house though, I just feel like sitting down somewhere where I'm not going to be mobbed."

"There's going to be a problem on that one man," said Jake.

"What do you mean?" asked Finn confused.

"Well after you'd left, I couldn't really stay living there by myself," explained Jake. "I moved out three years ago and moved in with Lady. Nobodies been at the house for ages, it's probably full of spiders and junk."

"Not really," said Marceline as she floated nearby. Her comment caused all eyes to fall on her as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Once a month, I head to your old place and give it a once over with a rag and whatnot, just to keep it clean."

"What, were you thinking of moving in or something?" asked Flame Princess curiously.

"Actually I was just keeping it clean on the off chance that one day Finn was going to come back," said Marceline with the slightest of blushes on her cheeks, something which went relatively unseen.

"That was nice of you," said Princess Bubblegum.

"Thanks for that," said Finn.

"Yea well it just so happens that your house gets some wicked sick acoustic vibrations so I also did some solo jamming there," said Marceline as she did her best to save face.

"That's fine," said Finn. "I guess if you want we can all meet up there tonight, I reckon I'm just going to try and get a nap in or something. I'm pretty exhausted."

"Sure thing Finn," said Princess Bubblegum. "I'll arrange for a party tomorrow but I won't tell any of the citizens what it's about. Marceline, will you be willing to play some music during the festivities?"

"Shouldn't be a problem," said Marceline with a shrug of the shoulders.

"Alright then, I'll see you all tonight," said Princess Bubblegum before giving a polite wave and making her way towards the towering doors to her kingdom.

"Lady and I will head on back to our place and mix up a big bowl of spaghetti for you, how does that sound?" asked Jake.

"Sounds great man," said Finn.

"Alright then, see you later," said Jake as he hopped on to Lady's back.

"God dangsin-eulbogo," said Lady before she took off, her form painting a vibrant display of colours in front of a blue background.

"I guess I'll head back to my place for now and get ready for tonight," said Flame Princess before moving forward and embracing Finn in a split second hug as to not burn anymore of his clothes. "Thanks for coming home."

Before Finn could utter a response, Flame Princess burned her way across the fields at a rate that could barely be followed by the naked eye leaving only Finn and Marceline alone outside of the Candy Kingdom. "So what are your plans?" asked Finn.

"Might just come chill at yours for a while, kind of got some new inspirations for songs so I might take a crack at writing them down," said Marceline with a shrug of the shoulders. "Not like I got anything better to do these days."

"I thought you usually slept during the middle of the day," said Finn as he began the steady walk back to his old house, Marceline floating beside him.

"I don't really need that much sleep in general," said Marceline. "So long as I can get a few hours in around sunrise I should be fine for the rest of the day. Mostly though if I don't actually have anything on then I don't bother getting up."

"So you had something to do today?" asked Finn.

"Well me, Bonnibel and Flame Princess keep meeting every now and again, today just happened to be one of those days," said the vampire. "If you had rocked up any other day then chances were that you weren't going to be getting a welcome part like the one that you did."

"That may have been better," said Finn honestly causing Marceline to give him a curious look. "I would've just liked a few days to settle back in, find a routine or something before being paraded around like a hero."

"But you are a hero," said Marceline recalling all of the heroics that Finn had achieved.

"Was," said Finn solemnly which caused the vampire to go silent. She could see that he was uncomfortable about the topic and knew not to press into anything that he wouldn't want to speak of just yet, much how he had been patient with in the past.

The rest of the walk was a silent one as Marceline hid underneath the shade that the umbrella offered. As they reached the ever familiar building, Finn paused a moment to look it all over. "Looks like it's grown," he commented.

"Only a couple of feet," said Marceline. "Some of the branches might need clipping but it's nothing too serious."

"Guess I'll get on to that in the next couple of days," said Finn as he moved the final few steps before reaching his front door. A little rust had formed on the hinges over the years but it still wielded easily to Finn's force. Just as Marceline had said, the scene Finn found himself looking at was a rather clean one albeit that Jake had obviously taken most of the stuff when he had left years earlier.

"Home sweet home?" said Marceline hoping to get a cheerful reaction from the blond.

"I guess, at least I have a roof over my head," said Finn as Marceline closed the door behind her before putting away the umbrella, no longer needing it now that she was inside. "How much stuff did Jake take with him?"

"He left most of the larger stuff here," explained the vampire. "Couches and the fridge, along with your bed and most of your clothes. Don't really think he had it in him to chuck them all away."

"That's good to know," said Finn as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I trust you can entertain yourself for a few hours before everybody else gets here."

"Might as well work on a few tracks for tomorrow night," said Marceline remembering how Princess Bubblegum had asked her to play at Finn's return party. "You just get some sleep, you look knackered."

"I feel knackered," said Finn before a loud yawn escaped his lips. "Excuse me. Anyways, I'll see you shortly."

"Sure thing," said Marceline as she watched Finn ascend the ladder towards his bedroom before making her way to the music studio she had installed in the building. Finn was set on auto mode however as he moved instinctually through the house, even though years had passed by his body seemed to know where to go before his mind had registered what was going on. It didn't take him long to reach his safehaven and he quickly tossed the covers of his bed aside and crawled underneath the sheats. Almost immediately he felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him sapping whatever remaining strength he had left. Barely a minute passed after he had covered himself with his sheets before sleep overtook him.

...

Finn awoke groggily, his eyes only just opening to find that the sun was setting on the horizon. The reason he had been awoken was the melody he could hear reverberating through the house. It wasn't loud by any means, but it had broken him out of his sleep.

Pushing himself to a sitting position, he stretched out his arm before rubbing the place where his right arm once was, the skin tender to the touch. Considering the size of the scar, he doubted whether it would ever lose the tenderness. Perhaps it was better this way, a reminder of what had happened.

It would always be a reminder.

Rubbing the remaining sleep from his eyes, Finn got to his feet and made his way to the wardrobe. Thankfully when Jake had vacated years earlier he had chosen not to toss out all of Finn's old clothes, whether out of nostalgia or some other reason Finn didn't know. Even though everything was a little small it would still do until he went and picked up some new clothes over the coming days.

The music continued to play as he got himself dressed. Every now and again the music would cut out, Finn imagined that Marceline was using these breaks to write either lyrics or add to a sheet of music. Working his way through the familiar rooms of the house, Finn followed the noise trail and peaked his head through the doorway where the sound was originating from. Marceline, seemingly sensing that she was suddenly being watched, turned around just in time to see Finn appear.

"Thought you would have been asleep for longer," she commented. "Sorry if I woke you."

"I'll sleep later," said Finn. "Finish your song?"

"Just about, adding the final touches now," said Marceline.

"Is it appropriate for the party tomorrow, I remember you like to sing some stuff which gets on PB's nerves," said Finn recalling past memories.

"It's a little bleak, but there's happiness to it as well," said Marceline. "Not my usual style but it fits the situation."

"Can I hear it?" asked Finn innocently.

"Well...I guess it's okay," said Marceline as she picked up her bass. "It's still a rough draft, the final product will be ready by tomorrow but a demo session won't hurt."

Finn made his way over to a couch that had been left behind from when Jake vacated all those years ago while Marceline tuned her instrument appropriately, plucking the strings several times to make sure the tuning was just right. As her song began Finn couldn't help but become immediately entranced by the music, lost in the rhythm that the vampire created. As she began to sing however he became even more captivated to the song, leaning in as to not miss a single lyric.

_"There is something that I fear_

_Everytime that you are near_

_Feelings burning at my core_

_Something I cannot ignore_

_We have gone our separate ways_

_Making our emotions sway_

_Please don't let it end like this_

_Friendships__ drowning in abyss_

___It's like there's fire in my veins_

_Slowly driving me __insane_

_I'm not meant to feel this way_

_Please tell me I am not okay_

___Churning deep inside_

_Twisting at my mind_

_Burning with desire_

_This internal fire_

_It's like there's fire in my veins_

_Slowly driving me insane_

_I'm not meant to feel this way_

_Please tell me I am not okay_

___It's like there's fire in my veins_

_Slowly driving me insane_

_There is nothing I can do_

_Every time I think of you"_

Finn blinked a handful of times as the song came to a conclusion, Marceline allowing the last note to hang in the air for several seconds. "Marci," said Finn slowly as the vampire put down her instrument. "While it's great, I'm not quite sure if that song would be suitable tomorrow."

"Yea...I guess you're right," said Marceline as she struggled to look Finn in the eye. "It is kind of a personal song."

"Is it for someone special?" asked Finn.

Thankfully his question went unanswered as the someone knocked on the door several times causing Finn's attention to shift. "Yo Finn, you up yet?" shouted Jake from the other side of the house.

"Sweet, Jake and Lady must be here," said Finn as he got up from his seat and made his way to go welcome his brother back to the old house. Marceline hung in the air, her arms crossing as she rubbed her shoulders as if a shiver had travelled across her spine.

"It's for you Finn," she said softly, answering Finn's question to an empty area.

"Are you coming Marceline?" asked Finn as he poked his head back into the room.

"Give me a minute," said Marceline dismissing the human before spending a handful of seconds composing herself. Before anybody else decided to pop their head in to check on her she made her way out into the central room where the guests that had arrived were whilst waiting for the rest to soon follow.

...

Once everybody had arrived and had eaten the food that Jake had prepared, they had all gathered around in a circle where all attention was on Finn, the human seemingly not minding being the centre of attention.

"Geulaeseo museun il-i iss-eossneunji malhae Finn," said Lady Rainicorn as she rested with her head in Jake's lap, her body circling round itself several times as to not take up too much space.

"Yea Finn, tell us," said Princess Bubblegum hoping that she wasn't putting too much pressure on the human.

Finn looked around at his closest friends, breathing deeply as he prepared to tell his tale.

...

**Hope you enjoyed.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Adventure Time**

**...**

"Dangsin-eun manh-eun il-eul haessda gat-eun soli Finn," said Lady Rainicorn as the human finished the story of his travels.

"No kidding," said Princess Bubblegum, agreeing whole heartedly with what her friend had said.

"Wait, so let me get this straight," said Jake, causing all of the attention in the room to fall on to him. "So you're saying, that the first year you were looking for your dad you could only find rumors and false trails that lead you on a wild goose chase. The next year you got some viable information, something about him escaping from a place called the Citadel, crossed thousands of miles only to find that the information was old and that even though your father had actually been there he'd left who knows how long earlier. Despite all that however, you don't give up and spend the next year finally tracking him down to the top of some isolated mountain only to find that all of that time in isolation made him go crazy and he believed you were nothing more than a figment of his imagination. Then out of nowhere he starts attacking you and hacks off your arm, only to realize that you're real and during these moments loses his footing and falls to his death before you spend the next year finding your way back here."

"That pretty much sums it up," said Finn who was still a little downtrodden after having retold the story of his adventures.

"Did you really have to summarize it like that?" asked Marceline. "Couldn't you have done that internally or something?"

"Not really, basically I just felt the need to make sure that I hadn't missed any of the important information and that anybody who had dozed off or something was brought up to scratch," explained Jake.

"The way you made it sound was as if there was a fourth wall or something and you were bringing the reader or watcher up to scratch," said Princess Bubblegum. "Enough about that however. Finn, I want you to know that even though it's been years since we last saw you, we are still your friends and always will be."

"Thanks," said Finn, lifting his head ever so slightly in order to look the princess in the eye. A smile crossed her lips and even though he tried to mimic the expression upon his own face but knew that it was a cheap replica. Flame Princess, seeing his discomfort, placed a hand upon his shoulder trying to put his nerves to rest.

"Are you okay?" she asked, removing her hand before his shirt began to burn.

"Yea, just thinking is all," said Finn.

"Well anyways, we should get going," said Jake. "We'll catch up tomorrow bro."

"I'll see you at the party," said Finn.

"What?" exclaimed Jake in surprise. "I thought you'd want to catch up with me mano o mano all day tomorrow. How do you already have plans?"

"Well actually I need to head over to Wizard City and pick up some stuff," said Finn.

"Are you sure that's safe?" said Marceline.

"I've got a plan, I'll just need your help," said Finn turning his attention towards Flame Princess.

"Me?" said Flame Princess in shock.

"Yea, you can stay here the night if you want and we'll head off first thing in the morning," said Finn finally starting to sound slightly optimistic, a glimmer of the Finn that they all knew and loved.

"Sure...sounds great," said Flame Princess blushing slightly, not having expected to be offered to spend the night.

"Oooooooooo," said Jake causing Lady Raincorn to give him a playful slap behind the head.

"Dangsin-eun geuleul yongseo haeyahabnida. Geuga i iyagi ui julgeoli e pil-yo haessgi ttaemun-e dangsin-i tteonan iyuneun geos-eul ileohan hwansang-eul gajigo han hae dong-an ulineun nuguui haengdong geuga mwongalaneun oebuui nugunga e uihae gyeoljeong doeeossda danji modeun munja issdago wihae sala han geos hu ne beonjjae byeog." said Lady Rainicorn, her words being understood by less than half the people in the room.

"I'm sure it's not that bad," said Princess Bubblegum. "Although since you two are leaving shortly can I please get a ride home, don't really feel like walking home at this time of the night."

"That shouldn't be a problem," said Jake before turning towards his brother and rushed forward, embracing him in a hug. "Don't ever leave again man."

"I'll try man," said Finn as he returned the hug.

"Alright then, we'll see you tomorrow night," said Jake as he broke the physical contact.

"See you then," said Finn as his brother walked over to where Lady Rainicorn and Princess Bubblegum stood.

"Farewell," bid Princess Bubblegum as Jake opened the window and stretched outside, the princess hoping atop Lady Rainicorn before the brightly colored individual flew out into the open air.

"I should fly the coop as well," said Marceline as she tucked several strands of hair behind her ear. "I've been awake long enough as it is and knowing little miss goody two shoes I'll need to be on my best behavior tomorrow and that ain't happening if I don't get enough shut eye."

"Fair enough Marceline, we'll see you soon," said Finn waving his hand in the vampire's direction.

"Later," said Marceline as she flew out of the open window before Finn walked over and closed it, eventually turning his attention to the last remaining person within the house other than himself. Flame Princess sat there awkwardly as she rubbed her knees together and looked away from the human. Finn couldn't help but admire how beautiful Flame Princess had become over the years but he was no longer a child with a crush and knew that he had to be mature around all the princesses...at least to a certain degree.

"You sure it's alright for me to stay Finn, I can just come back in the morning if you want," said Flame Princess not wanting to be a bother.

"If you don't burn anything down it'll be fine," said Finn with a slight chuckle. "Please though, don't burn the treehouse to the ground, I kind of need to live here."

"I'll keep my temperature down then," said Flame Princess with a smile.

"You can take my bed upstairs if you want, I'll sleep on the couch and we'll head out first thing tomorrow, sound like a plan?"

"It's a date," said Flame Princess before heading up to where she would be sleeping leaving Finn stuttering and blushing at the wording that his friend had used.

...

The walk to wizard city wasn't as bad as one would imagine, Flame Princess and Finn exchanging polite chat along a journey that seemed to end as soon as it started. Not once through their conversation however did Finn mention why they were here but just that he had to buy one item that he just had to have and couldn't get anywhere else. Upon reaching the hidden entrance to the city, Finn spoke the password that had been used several years earlier to enter the enchanted kingdom. As the barrier faltered a single man stood at the entrance to the city, a member of the wizard police if Finn recalled correctly.

"Halt," said the guard as they raised a hand, the signal instructing Flame Princess and Finn to come to a stop. "I don't sense any magical output from you. Everybody knows that those with no magical ability are forbidden from entering the city."

"Well you see, I do have magical abilities," lied Finn causing Flame Princess to look at him in confusion. "Or at least I did."

"Did?" repeated the guard in confusion.

"You see this," said Finn pointing at the scarred stump where his arm once was. "This is the result of trying out a new spell of mine. Everything was going fine but it just overloaded and before I know it I'm screaming out in pain, blood pouring down my torso until my yells attract my neighbours. Ever since that day I've been scared to use magic again, for anything other than summoning my elemental spirit Ruby here."

Flame Princess flushed slightly at the name that Finn gave her but it went unnoticed as Finn continued his story. "I'm just here to purchase some items and be on my way, you have my word that no trouble shall be caused by me or my familiar here. Are we free to pass?"

The guard stood there for several seconds before stepping to the side, bowing slightly as Flame Princess and Finn walked past. "Your familiar?" said Flame Princess once they were out of earshot.

"On my travels I magician who kept a creature with him, something that he called his familiar," explained Finn as they continued their walk down the street, ignoring the curious glances that witches and wizards sent their way. "I merely adapted the idea and used it to get us through."

"I remember once I told you not to lie to me again," said Flame Princess.

"When did I lie to you specifically then," said Finn with a cheeky smile. "Anyways I hope you don't mind the name I gave you, couldn't really go around calling you Flame Princess now could I."

"I guess," said Flame Princess as she looked away.

"I'll make it up to you shortly," said Finn turning a corner with Flame Princess by his side before coming to a stop. "Alright, we're here, just give me a couple of minutes to buy something and we'll be on our way."

"Wait, you mean we're only here for one thing," she said slightly annoyed by the fact they had come all this way for a single object.

"Trust me, it'll be worth it and I want it to be a surprise," said Finn as he pushed open the door. "I'll only be a minute."

"If you say so," said Flame Princess before Finn stepped through the door and allowed it to close behind him. She stood awkwardly outside the door as seconds ticked by like hours, feeling so out of place in the city comprised of magicians who had the power to do incredible feats that would astound thousands. They also had the power to extinguish her which was terrifying in it's own right.

One such wizard, one of whom she had squabbled with in the past, stepped into view and she couldn't want Finn to come out of the building a second sooner. Thankfully the Ice King hadn't seen her as yet and she tried to make herself seem as small as possible so that no attention would be drawn her way. This of course didn't help in any way as Ice King twisted his head to the side and spotted the fire elemental as if some internal princess trigger alerted him to the nearby royalty.

"Flame Princess!" he exclaimed in the thankfully deserted street lest the rage of the wizard community bare down upon her at that moment.

Before she could react however Finn stepped out of the shop, his purchase having been made. "What's going on?" asked the human before his eyes fell upon the ice wizard who had made his youth irritating to say the least. "Oh it's you."

"Finn," shouted the Ice King as he closed the distance between him and the duo. "My glob, how long has it been and what happened to your arm? If I remember correctly that was the arm that you used to punch me in the face with.'

"It was both of them actually," said Finn clearly remembering attacking the Ice King on multiple occasions with both fists. "Anyways, we kinda have to bail before anybody else recognizes us, you know the whole no magic thing."

"Oh right, you guys would be in heaps of trouble if people realized that you weren't wizards," said the Ice King at the exact moment that a couple of members of the Wizard Police stepped into view, their attention quickly focusing on the now identified non-magic users before them.

"Non-magic users within the city walls, receive your punishment," stated one of them as they lifted up the band covering their face.

"Down FP!" commanded Finn as he pushed his companion to the ground just in time before a beam of cosmic light shot over their heads. As the attack cleared, Finn grabbed hold of Flame Princess' hand and pulled her to her feet. "Run!" Not letting go of her hand for a second, Finn dragged Flame Princess along the alleyway. Before they rounded a corner, Finn looked over his shoulder to see that the Ice King had raised a barrier up causing an attack to ricochet into the sky.

"You owe me one Finn!" shouted the Ice King as he took to the sky.

"You got us into this mess in the first place!" shouted Finn in retaliation as he turned down an alleyway and out of view, Flame Princess by his side. "Alright, we need to get out of the city ASAP!"

"I could fly us out," offered Flame Princess, "But I don't want to burn you though and it would definitely be at least five seconds of flight."

"Halt!" shouted one of the Wizard Police as he rounded the corner and reached for his headband.

"Flight it is," said Finn as he leaped into Flame Princess' arms before the elemental took off into the air, a beam of light passing through where they had stood not a second later. It didn't take them long to escape the cities walls but Flame Princess was well aware that every moment she held onto her former boyfriend the more damage he would take. As she tried to descend however several beams of light shot directly into her flight path, forcing her to swerve to avoid being struck. Desperation beat through her being as she avoided every attack that she could, knowing full well that Finn could very well die within her arms if he stayed within her grasp too long.

Seconds ticked by like hours before she found herself with an opening, piercing through the sky like an arrow as she descended towards the ground, hitting the soil with enough force to leaver a crater in her wake before letting go of Finn, praying that the damage wasn't so bad. "Aw, I was liking it in your arms," said Finn with a light chuckle which caused confusion to rush through Flame Princess' mind as she looked at him.

Instead of seeing the human with burned flesh and his clothes on fire he was perfectly normal, not a single scratch on him. "Finn...how?" she started before pausing, not quite sure how to phrase her question.

"How am I not a pile of ash?" said Finn asking the question for her. Reaching into his shirt he pulled out an amulet that was strung around his neck by a golden chain. "This is what I bought in the store, it's a trinket that heavily reduces the effect that fire has on me and whatever it is that I'm wearing. With this around my neck I'll never be burnt again."

"Why did you buy something like that?" asked Flame Princess, confused at why he had bought the amulet.

"So I could do this," said Finn as he closed the distance between them and embraced the elemental princess in a hug and after a momentary stiffness at the human who held her in his arms, she returned the hug; neither of them letting go for a while as they merely enjoyed the physical interaction.

This moment, simply put, wasn't going to end anytime soon.

...

**Hope you enjoyed.**

For those of you wondering what that giant speil that Lady Rainicorn went on about, here is the translation.

"You'll have to excuse him. After you'd been gone for over a year he had these fantasies that the reason you had left was because it was necessary to the plot of a story and that we were merely all characters whose actions were decided by someone outside of something he called the fourth wall."

Just me having a bit of a laugh at myself and my ideas; I blame the booze

Peace


End file.
